Journal of Membrane Science & Technology

Mesoporous materials are mesoscale remedies for biofouling mitigation

2^nd International Conference on Membrane Science and Technology

September 13-14, 2018 | London, UK

Yasin Orooji

Nanjing Tech University, China

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Membr Sci Technol

Abstract:

Carbon-based materials, such as graphene oxide (GO), nanoporous carbon, carbon nanotubes (CNT), and hollow carbon sphere have attracted increasing attention for desalination, water treatment and purification, and antibacterial agents recently. Moreover, these materials can be easily combined with various polymeric materials for nanocomposite membrane preparation due to their excellent interfacial compatibility. These mixed matrix membranes (MMM) have improved performances, such as better bacterial adhesion resistance, higher water flux, and improved salt rejection. Accordingly, the carbon-based materials are promising candidates to prepare the highly efficient membranes with low bacterial attachment. Formerly, CNT and GO have been investigated for synergetic antibacterial effect. However, the potential of modified mesoporous carbon (MPC) has not been studied to prepare the antibacterial membranes. In comparison to GO and CNT, the higher specific surface area of MPC not only makes it a highly efficient candidate for making MMM with a stable affinity but it also develops a desirable space for doping other nanoparticles to produce a multifunctional filler. Likewise, due to the simplicity of synthesis of MPC, the vast variety of micro, macro and MPC with the different specific surface area, pore size and size distribution already have been industrialized in mass production scale. MPC provides anti-adhesion characteristics to prevent bacterial attachment and subsequently biofilm formation on the surface. Moreover, the Ag dopant will damage the probable severe microorganisms to perform synergy between anti-adhesion and antimicrobial effects of Ag-doped MPC poly (ether sulfone) (PES) ultrafiltration (UF) membrane plus long-lasting antibacterial effectiveness. This lecture focuses on the biofouling alleviation by means of blending of MPC and thermoexfoliated vermiculite (VMT) flat sheet membranes. MPC blended PES UF membrane matrix enhances antibacterial resistance to bacterial adhesion attachment properties of the membranes. The mechanisms are well defined in our recent researches as an anti-biofilm adhesion membrane was compared regarding membrane structure, surface morphology, and filtration performance. Furthermore, the protein adsorption and biofilm formation resistance of the nanocomposite membranes were investigated via static BSA adsorption and flow cytometry, respectively to provide a better understanding of the effect of dopant on membrane biofouling mitigation.

Biography :

E-mail: yasin@njtech.edu.cn